Pacing Strategy in Schoolchildren Differs with Age and Cognitive Development

MICKLEWRIGHT, D., C. ANGUS, J. SUDDABY, A. ST CLAIR GIBSON, G. SANDERCOCK, and C. CHINNASAMY. Pacing Strategy in Schoolchildren Differs with Age and Cognitive Development. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 44, No. 2, pp. 362-369, 2012. Purpose: The study's purpose was to examine differences in pacing strategy between schoolchildren of different age, gender, and stage of cognitive development. Methods: Schoolchildren (n = 106) from four age groups (5-6, 8-9, 11-12, and 14 yr) participated in this study. Each schoolchild completed four conservation tasks to evaluate his or her Piagetian stage of cognitive development. Each schoolchild then performed a best-effort running task on a 150-m running track that was video recorded to analyze pace at 5% increments. The length of the run was varied for each age group to ensure that all schoolchildren were running for approximately 4 min (5-6 yr = 450 m, 8-9 yr = 600 m, 11-12 yr = 750 m, and 14 yr = 900 m). Results: Differences in pacing strategy were found between schoolchildren of different age (P < 0.0001), gender (P < 0.0001), and cognitive development (P < 0.0001). Pacing differences were also found between age groups after controlling for cognitive development (P < 0.001), between cognitive abilities after controlling for age (P < 0.01), and between genders after controlling for both age (P < 0.0001) and cognitive ability (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: Younger schoolchildren with less advanced cognitive development exhibited a negative pacing strategy indicating an inability to anticipate exercise demand. Older schoolchildren at a more advanced stage of cognitive development exhibited a more conservative U-shaped pacing strategy characterized by faster running speeds during the first 15% and last 20% of the run. Anticipatory pacing strategy seems to be related to both the age and cognitive development of schoolchildren.